Van Morrison will perform Astral Weeks live

The seemingly unstoppable flow of artists revisiting their classic albums onstage over the last year or two, from Tortoise to Echo & the Bunnymen and beyond, has undoubtedly inspired all manner of trainspotter speculation and wild-eyed record-geek dreams. It's not a stretch to imagine that one of those pie-in-the-sky notions might have been Van Morrison bringing Astral Weeks to the boards. At least until now.

This would have been a tough one to call, as the notoriously recalcitrant and bloody-minded Morrison has never been one to kowtow to the expectations of fans, critics, labels, or anyone whose name doesn't start with Van and end with Morrison. Nevertheless, the old Celtic cowboy has apparently retained enough affection for his 1968 classic that he's consented to perform it in its entirety (note: this post officially marks the 750,000th time this year the phrase "in its entirety" has been used in reference to this concert trend) at L.A.'s Hollywood Bowl on November 7 and 8, irresistibly tantalizing anyone who doesn't live in the vicinity of the Golden State. Cheer up, non West-coasters, maybe Holly Johnson and friends will bring Welcome to the Pleasuredome to your town or something.